The Wiggins family looked like any other close-knit group in the lobby of a Chicago hotel on Wednesday night, blending in, laughing ... except for the one signing all kinds of autographs.

It’s tough to be too anonymous when both parents were outstanding athletes, when one son will play in the Final Four this weekend and another is Andrew Wiggins, an 18-year-old hoops wunderkind who seems destined to become Canada’s first-ever No. 1 overall NBA draft pick in the summer of 2014.

Andrew scored 19 points as the brightest star at the prestigious McDonald’s All-American game on Wednesday in front of thousands of fans and numerous NBA scouts and executives. But nobody watching was more proud of Andrew than the group that came down from Vaughan, Ont., to see him play: Dad Mitch, once a high-scoring guard in the NBA and Europe, mom Marita Payne-Wiggins, a two-time Olympic silver medallist for Canada, and sisters Stephanie, Angelica and Taya. Only older brother Mitchell Jr. — who a couple of years ago was called the best player in the family by Mitch Sr. — and middle son Nick – otherwise occupied with the aptly named Wichita State Shockers — weren’t on hand.

Next, they’ll be going to Atlanta to see if the Shockers can make history.

The senior Wiggins and his wife rarely talk to the media, but in the midst of this once in a lifetime week, the duo was happy to chat with the Sun about their children and how, despite Andrew’s ever-growing fame, nobody is made to feel left out or jealous.

“It just brings me excitement to see the boys are attaining their dreams, that’s the most important thing. They started out with small goals and (now) they’re achieving their goals,” Payne-Wiggins said.

“You know there’s some other players in the Wiggins family,” added Wiggins Sr. with a laugh, talking about not only about his sons, but about his two youngest daughters, who he believes will be good NCAA players one day and, perhaps, even Canadian Olympians like their mom.

“I’m just happy for Nicky, he’s blessed that the team is in the Final Four, nobody expected Wichita State to be there, but they’re on a great run right now, they’re playing really well,” said the proud dad.

After averaging five points per game this season, Nick Wiggins has seen limited minutes during the Shockers’ memorable run. Still, his father lived through a similar experience and came out the better for it, he says, playing far more the next year and later becoming a first-round pick after not getting much run in his own Elite Eight appearance.

Though Kentucky, Florida State, North Carolina and Kansas are the schools Andrew is considering attending next year, he is all in for Wichita State this time around.

“Yeah, they’re my favourite. I wanted them to win from the start of the tournament, I hope they take it all,” he said earlier in the week.

Though Andrew has been called the Canadian LeBron James, Kevin Durant or even Michael Jordan, he’s treated by his family as just a normal kid.

“The way it should be,” says his mom, whom Mitchell Sr. says Andrew most takes after.

That’s how his siblings treat him as well and Andrew sees himself as just one of them, no different, even if the world is starting to take notice of him.

He doesn’t think all of his success weighs on any of them, in fact he seemed shocked when I brought it up.

“Yeah, (Wichita’s success) is good for (Nick), but I don’t think it’s hard for him. We were really close growing up, me, him, my other brother and all my sisters, we are all one, big, close family, so it’s all love,” Andrew said.

His mother agreed. When asked whether it’s tough on the other children, Payne-Wiggins quickly replied:

“No. What it does, it encourages them and it gives them a drive.

“I don’t think any of them have any selfish feelings between each other, they just drive each other. I think Andrew has a bit of (both of his older brothers), so he’s got the best of both worlds. He’s able to learn from them but they encourage and that’s the way it should be.”

WIGGINS LEARNED WELL FROM PARENTS

The curse of being more talented than just about anybody else can lead to absurd expectations.

Andrew Wiggins faces some of that — even a 19-point performance at the McDonald’s All-American Game on Wednesday was met with more shrugs than “wows.”

But Wiggins has the cliche of not getting too high or too low down to a science and it’s clear where he got that mindset from.

“It’s from both of us, the way he was raised. He just has a level head, knows how to deal (with all of the demands on him),” Wiggins’ mom Marita Payne-Wiggins told the Sun a couple of hours after the game.

“You can’t really get a big head because if you don’t work hard, you’re not going to get anywhere. The way he is is because he works hard and continues to work hard and set goals for himself and that’s what you need to do,” she said.

“Everything he’s doing it looks like he’s done it before, he doesn’t get overhyped, doesn’t get excited by the crowd, but he has a thirst to be a very good player, he wants to be a very good player,” said Andrew’s father, Mitchell.

“You look at Kevin Durant’s mannerisms, you don’t really know what’s going on. It could be 30,000 people, one-point game, but you look at his face, he looks calm as can be and I told Andrew never to let people see you sweat. He’s been a great listener.”

Wiggins told his son before the game that his body of work spoke for itself and he didn’t need to prove anything by hogging the ball and trying to dominate.

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Andrew Wiggins and clan one big happy family

The Wiggins family looked like any other close-knit group in the lobby of a Chicago hotel on Wednesday night, blending in, laughing ... except for the one signing all kinds of autographs.

It’s tough to be too anonymous when both parents were outstanding athletes, when one son will play in the Final Four this weekend and another is Andrew Wiggins, an 18-year-old hoops wunderkind who seems destined to become Canada’s first-ever No. 1 overall NBA draft pick in the summer of 2014.

Andrew scored 19 points as the brightest star at the prestigious McDonald’s All-American game on Wednesday in front of thousands of fans and numerous NBA scouts and executives. But nobody watching was more proud of Andrew than the group that came down from Vaughan, Ont., to see him play: Dad Mitch, once a high-scoring guard in the NBA and Europe, mom Marita Payne-Wiggins, a two-time Olympic silver medallist for Canada, and sisters Stephanie, Angelica and Taya.